Escolar Documentos
Profissional Documentos
Cultura Documentos
ON
DENTAL CARIES
BY
BALOGUN, FOLASHADE
CHRISTIANA
OUTLINE
INTRODUCTION
CAUSES OF DENTAL CARIES
CLASSIFICATION
PATHOGENESIS
CLINICAL CHARACTERISTICS
EPIDEMIOLOGY
DIAGNOSIS
PREVENTION
CONTROL
CONCLUSION
REFERENCES
INTRODUCTION
Dental caries, also known as tooth decay or a cavity, is an
irreversible infection usually bacterial in origin that causes
demineralization of the hard tissues( Enamel Dentin and
Cementum) and destruction of the organic matter of the tooth,
usually by production of acid by hydrolysis of the food debris
accumulated on the tooth surface.
If demineralization exceeds saliva and other remineralization
factors like from calcium,fluoridated tooth pastes, these tissues
progressively break down, producing dental caries (cavities,
holes in the teeth).
Tooth decay is caused by specific types of acid-producing
bacteria that cause damage in the presence of fermentable
carbohydrate such as sucrose, fructose and glucose.
Cariology is the study of dental caries (Rogers, 2008).
CLASSIFICATION
CLASSIFICATION (cont)
PATHOGENESIS
Mutans streptococci participate in the formation of biofilms on tooth
PATHOGENESIS (cont).
CLINICAL CHARACTERISTICS
CLINICAL
CHARACTERISTICS(cont)
In defining
the individual risk factor of each patient, the dentist
assesses the teeth that are already decayed, missing, or filled
(DMF), the patients medical history and he may receive further
information following salivary tests.
The hygienist can help the dentist to effect these salivary tests,
which make it possible to assess:
The quantity of salivary flow in a unit of time
The buffer capacity of the saliva, which is its capacity to
prevent the process of demineralization and to promote the
processes of remineralization
The presence and the quantity of Streptococcus mutans and
Lactobacillus (American Dental Association, 2006).
EPIDEMIOLOGY
Worldwide, most children and an estimated ninety percent of adults
have experienced caries, with the disease most prevalent in Latin
American countries, countries in the Middle East, and South Asia,
and least prevalent in China.
EPIDEMIOLOGY(cont).
In the United States, dental caries is the most common chronic
to very low caries prevalence and severity with little increase, few
oral care personnel and an imbalance between personnel types
and population needs, rural and periurban communities without
basic care or with emergency care only, due to the high cost or
unavailability of other treatment, the low priority given to oral
health care due to the presence of several general health problems
and enormous development needs (Zadik and Bechor, 2008).
DIAGNOSIS
Primary diagnosis involves inspection of all visible tooth surfaces
using a good light source, dental mirror and explorer.
Dental radiographs(X-rays) ,may show dental caries before it is
otherwise visible in particular caries between the teeth.
Large dental caries are often apparent to the naked eyes, but the
smaller lesions can be difficult to identify.
Visual and tactile inspection along with radiographs are employed
frequently among dentists, in particular to diagnose pit and
fissures caries.
Early, uncavitated caries is often diagnosed by blowing air across
the suspected surface, which removes moisture and changes the
optical properties of the unmineralised enamel (Rosentiel and
Stephen, 2000).
PLATE 3:
dental
explorer
PREVENTION
Oral hygiene
Personal hygiene care consists of proper brushing and
flossing daily.
The
purpose
of
oral
hygiene
is
to
minimise
any
PREVENTION(cont).
Also, chewy and sticky foods (such as dried fruit or candy) tend
to adhere to teeth longer, and, as a consequence, are best eaten
as
part
of
meal.
Brushing
the
teeth
after
meals
is
recommended.
For children, the American Dental Association and the European
Academy
of
Paediatric
Dentistry
recommend
limiting
the
PREVENTION(CONT)
Mothers are also recommended to avoid sharing utensils
and cups with their infants to prevent transferring bacteria
from the mother's mouth.
It has been found that milk and certain kinds of cheese like
cheddar cheese can help counter tooth decay if eaten soon
after the consumption of foods potentially harmful to teeth.
Other measures
The use of dental sealants is a means of prevention. A
sealant is a thin plastic-like coating applied to the chewing
surfaces of the molars (American Dental Association, 2006).
Destroyed
tooth
CONTROL
structure
does
not
fully
regenerate,
encourage remineralization.
For larger lesions, the progression of dental caries can be
stopped by treatment.
A dental hand piece (drill) is used to remove large portion of
CONTROL (cont).
Once the decay is removed,
the missing tooth structure
requires a dental restoration
of some sort to return the
tooth to functionality.
Restorative materials include
dental amalgam, composite
resin, porcelain and gold.
CONCLUSION
Dental caries is a disease that is common world wide. A
person experiencing caries may not be aware of the
disease especially when it is an incipent caries thus, it is
necessary to practice oral hygiene in order to avoid
accumulation of plaque on tooth surface which brings
about dental caries.
REFERENCES
ADA Early Childhood Tooth Decay (2006). Baby Bottle Tooth Decay.
Hosted on the American Dental Association website.
Nature Publishing Group (2006). Nature reviews Immunology: Molecular
Pathogenesis of dental caries associated with Mutans streptococci.
Oral Health Topics: Dental Filling Options. hosted on the American Dental
Association website. Page accessed August 16, 2006.
Rogers AH (editor). (2008). Molecular Oral Microbiology.
Caister
Academic Press.
Rosenstiel, Stephen F. Clinical Diagnosis of Dental Caries: A North
American
Dentistry Library,
Schwartz,
R.B,
Summit,
James,
B.,
Robins,
J.
William
(2001).
edition. Carol
p. 75.
The World Oral Health Report 2003: Continuous improvement of oral
health in
Health
Zadik Yehuda, Bechor Ron (2008). "Hidden Occlusal Caries - Challenge for
the Dentist. New York State Dental Journal 74 (4): 4650.